Vacuum cleaner with spiral air guide

ABSTRACT

A vacuum cleaner includes a housing having a suction inlet, a dirt collection vessel carried on the housing and a suction generator carried on the housing. The dirt collection vessel includes a dirt collection chamber and a spiral air guide providing a spiral air path to improve cleaning efficiency. The spiral air guide includes an inlet at a first end and a split outlet at a second end. The split outlet includes a head wall at a particular included angle with respect to the airflow path. The suction generator is provided in fluid communication with the suction inlet, the dirt collection vessel and the spiral air guide.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to the floor care equipment field and, more particularly, to a vacuum cleaner equipped with a dirt collection vessel including a dirt collection chamber and a spiral air guide providing a spiral air path.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Bagless vacuum cleaner technology has long been known in the art. Japanese patent applications 56-136642 and 56-136650 both published in 1981 disclose an upright vacuum cleaner with a dirt collection chamber that removably connects to an opening of the main unit to facilitate user convenience during the emptying of the cleaner. A removable filter fills an opening at the bottom of the dust chamber and serves to separate dirt and dust from air drawn through the vacuum cleaner by the fan and motor assembly.

The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner that incorporates a dirt collection vessel including a dirt collection chamber and a spiral air guide that provides a spiral air path for improved cleaning efficiency.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the purposes of the present invention as described herein, an improved vacuum cleaner is provided. That vacuum cleaner comprises a housing including a suction inlet and both a dirt collection vessel and a suction generator carried on the housing. The dirt collection vessel includes a dirt collection chamber. The vacuum cleaner includes a spiral air guide providing a spiral air path that enhances cleaning efficiency. The spiral air guide includes an inlet at a first end and a split outlet at a second end. The suction generator is provided in fluid communication with the suction inlet, the dirt collection vessel and the spiral air guide.

The dirt collection vessel includes a first dirt collection chamber, a primary inlet in communication with that first chamber, a second dirt collection chamber, a secondary inlet in communication with that second chamber and a chamber outlet. The split outlet includes a first section provided in communication with a clean air manifold and a second section provided in communication with the secondary inlet. More specifically, the split outlet includes a head wall extending across the air path at an included angle of between about 0 and about 30 degrees and most typically about 15 degrees. The spiral air guide also includes an inlet in fluid communication with the first chamber outlet, and at least one clean air discharge orifice along an inside portion of the spiral air path. The spiral air guide comprises a spiral, tubular conduit.

In one possible embodiment the spiral air path has a substantially constant cross sectional area from the first end to the second end. That cross sectional area is between about 250 mm² and about 1000 mm². In another possible embodiment the spiral air path has a cross sectional area that decreases from the first end to the second end. In yet another possible embodiment, the spiral air path has a cross sectional area that increases from the first end to the second end. The spiral air path may also be substantially flat.

In one possible embodiment of the invention the first dirt collection chamber is substantially cylindrical in shape and the primary inlet is tangentially directed with respect to the first dirt collection chamber. The chamber outlet is axially directed with respect to the dirt collection chamber. Further the chamber outlet includes a sieve having about 1000 to about 1500 apertures and each of the apertures has a cross sectional area of between about 2.3 mm² to about 6.4 mm².

In accordance with one possible embodiment of the present invention, the housing includes a first cavity and a second cavity. The dirt collection vessel is received and held in the first cavity while the spiral air guide is received and held in the second cavity. In this way, the dirt collection vessel and the spiral air guide are made independently removable from the housing.

In the following description there are shown multiple preferred embodiments of the invention simply by way of illustration of some of the modes best suited to carry out the invention. As it will be realized, the invention is capable of other different embodiments and its several details are capable of modification in various, obvious aspects all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

The accompanying drawing incorporated in and forming a part of the specification, illustrates several aspects of the present invention, and together with the description serves to explain certain principles of the invention. In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a detailed cross sectional view of the dirt collection vessel of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematical air flow diagram for the vacuum cleaner of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the alternative embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a detailed top plan view of the spiral air guide of the alternative embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5.

Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is now made to FIGS. 1-3 illustrating one possible embodiment of the vacuum cleaner 10 of the present invention. The illustrated embodiment is an upright vacuum cleaner 10. It should be appreciated, however, that the present invention also includes and this patent covers canister and handheld bagless vacuum cleaners.

The illustrated vacuum cleaner 10 includes a housing, generally designated by reference numeral 12. That housing 12 includes a nozzle assembly or section 14 and a canister assembly or section 16. As is known in the art, the canister assembly 16 is pivotally connected to the nozzle assembly 14 to aid the operator in manipulating the vacuum cleaner to and fro across the floor. Wheels (not shown) carried on the housing 12 allow the vacuum cleaner 10 to be moved smoothly across the floor.

As illustrated, the nozzle assembly 14 is equipped with a nozzle or suction inlet 18. In the illustrated embodiment, the suction inlet 18 also includes a rotary agitator 20. The rotary agitator 20 is equipped with projecting cleaning structures 21 such as bristle tufts, brushes, wipers, beater bars or the like to aid in stripping dirt and debris from a nap of an underlying carpet being cleaned.

The canister assembly 16 houses a suction generator 22 (i.e. a fan and motor assembly) and a dirt collection vessel 24 including a spiral air guide 25 and a dirt collection chamber 26 (see FIG. 2). The details of the dirt collection vessel 24 will be described in greater detail below. The canister assembly 16 also includes a control handle 28 and an actuator switch 30 for turning the vacuum cleaner 10 on and off and thereby driving the rotary agitator 20 and the suction generator 22.

As best illustrated in FIG. 2, the dirt collection vessel 24 includes a main body comprising a bottom wall 32 and a curved sidewall 34. In the illustrated embodiment, the bottom wall 32 comprises a door that is pivotally mounted to the sidewall 34 and secured in a closed position by a latch (not shown). The latch may be actuated to open the door 32 and empty dirt and debris from the dirt collection chamber 26 when desired, in a manner well known in the art. The dirt collection vessel 24 also includes a tangentially directed inlet 35 and an axially directed chamber outlet 37. A shoulder 36 formed in the curved sidewall 34 supports the spiral air guide 25. A lid 38 seats on the upper edge of the side wall 34 and seals the open end 40 of the main body.

As should be appreciated, the spiral air guide 25 functions to partition the dirt collection vessel 24 into the dirt collection chamber 26 and the clean air manifold 42. A manifold outlet 44 in the lid 38 provides fluid communication between the clean air manifold 42 and the suction generator 22 through a conduit 45.

As further illustrated in FIG. 2, the shoulder 36 also receives and holds a sieve 46. The sieve 46 is substantially cylindrical in shape and is concentrically received within the curved sidewall 34 of the main body of the dirt collection vessel 24. As illustrated the sieve 46 includes an outer wall 48 incorporating a series of apertures 50. More specifically, the sieve 46 includes between about 1000 to about 1500 apertures 50 and each aperture has a cross sectional area of between about 2.3 mm² to about 6.4 mm². The apertures 50 may be round, oval, multisided or substantially any shape.

The sieve 46 includes an inner wall 52 that engages a tubular element 53. The tubular element 53 is concentrically received within the sidewall 34 of the dirt collection vessel 24. The bottom of the tubular element 53 is closed by a convexity 55 in the bottom wall or door 32. A second dirt collection chamber 54 is defined inside the inner wall 52 and tubular element 53 above the convexity 55. Thus, it should be appreciated that the chamber outlet 37 is annular in shape and extends around the second dirt collection chamber 54.

The spiral air guide 25 comprises a substantially flat, spiral, tubular conduit 56. The spiral tubular conduit 56 has an inlet 58 at a first end and a split outlet 60 at a second end. The inlet 58 is provided in fluid communication with the first chamber outlet 37 and the sieve 46 while the outlet 60 is provided with a first section in fluid communication with the clean air manifold 42 and a second section in communication with the secondary inlet 51 of the second dirt collection chamber 54.

The split outlet 60 also includes a head wall 67. The head wall 67 extends across the air path at an included angle θ of between about 0 and about 30 degrees and most typically about 15 degrees. The function of the head wall 67 will be discussed in detail below.

The spiral tubular conduit 56 may have a substantially constant cross sectional area from the first end to the second end of from about 250 mm² to about 1000 mm². In one possible alternative embodiment the spiral tubular conduit may define a spiral air path having a cross sectional area that decreases from the first end to the second end. In yet another alternative embodiment the spiral tubular conduit 56 may define a spiral air path that has a cross sectional area that increases from the first end to the second end. In any of these embodiments, the spiral air guide 25 includes at least one clean air discharge orifice 62 along an inside portion of the spiral air path defined by the spiral tubular conduit 56. The discharge orifice 62 is provided in communication with the clean air manifold 42.

During operation the rotary agitator 20 beats dirt and debris from the nap of an underlying carpet being cleaned (see FIG. 3). That dirt and debris is drawn in an air stream into the vacuum cleaner 10 through the suction inlet 18 by means of the suction generator 22. After passing through a conduit 65, the air stream entrained with dirt and debris is delivered through the tangentially directed inlet 35 into the dirt collection chamber 26 of the dirt collection vessel 24 (see also FIG. 2). The resulting cyclonic air flow (note action arrows A) tends to force the dirt and debris toward the side wall 34 of the dirt collection vessel 24 while the relatively clean air is drawn through the apertures 50 of the sieve 46 past the chamber outlet 37 (note action arrow B). The air stream then passes through the inlet 58 into the spiral tubular conduit 56 of the spiral air guide 25 (note action arrow C).

As the air stream travels through the conduit 56 it is drawn into a tighter and tighter circle and is thereby accelerated. Any fine dirt particles that were capable of passing through the apertures 50 are forced against the outside portion of the spiral air path while relatively clean air along the inside portion of the spiral air path is drawn through the discharge orifices 62 into the clean air manifold 42 (note action arrow D). The remaining fine dirt particles are forced to travel along the outer portion of the spiral air path of the conduit 56 and exit at the split outlet 60. More specifically, the fine particles P are forced into the head wall 67. The angle θ of the head wall 67 functions to deflect the particles P downwardly through the second section of the outlet 60 directly into the second or fine particle dirt collection chamber 54 through the secondary inlet 51 (note action arrow E). Consequently, it should be appreciated that the spiral air guide 25 functions to insure that even the finest dirt particles are captured in the dirt collection vessel 24. Simultaneously, the remaining clean air stream is drawn off through the first section of the split outlet 60 into the clean air manifold 42 (note action arrow F).

The now clean air delivered to the clean air manifold 42 passes through the manifold outlet 44 (note action arrow G) and then moves along a conduit 45 through a secondary filter 64 before being delivered to the suction generator 22. As the clean air passes through the suction generator 22 it functions to coos the motor of the suction generator. The clean air is then exhausted through a final filter 66, such as a HEPA filter to remove any remaining particles such as carbon particles from the motor brushes, before being discharged back into the environment through the exhaust port 68.

As should be appreciated, the spiral air guide 25 functions to return relatively fine dirt particles to the second chamber 54 of the dirt collection vessel 24 for capture and disposal thereby stripping those particles from the clean air subsequently delivered through the secondary filter 64 to the suction generator 22. As such, the air guide functions to enhance the cleaning efficiency of the vacuum cleaner 10.

In the alternative embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 4-6, the dirt collection vessel 24 and spiral air guide 25 are separate structures. The dirt collection vessel 24 is received in a first cavity 76 in the canister assembly 16. The spiral air guide 25 is received in a second cavity 78 in the canister assembly 16. A conduit 85 held in the canister assembly 16 provides fluid communication between the second section of the outlet 60 with the secondary inlet 51 of the second fine particle dirt collection chamber 54. More specifically, the spiral air guide 25 may be integrally formed with a drawer 80 that slides into and out of the second cavity 78 (see particularly FIG. 6). As illustrated, the drawer 80 may include an integral handle 82 that is grasped with the fingers in order to be removed from the housing 12. Similarly, the dirt collection vessel 24 also includes a handle 83 that is grasped with the fingers in order to be removed from the housing. In this embodiment, the dirt collection vessel 24 and the spiral air guide 25 are independently removable from the housing 12 so that the operator may clean either as necessary or desired.

The foregoing description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. For example, while the illustrated embodiment incorporates a cylindrically shaped dirt collection chamber 26, a tangentially directed inlet 35 and an axially directed outlet 37 in order to provide for cyclonic airflow, the invention is not limited to such an arrangement. The dirt collection chamber 26 may assume another shape. The inlet 35 need not be tangentially directed and the outlet 37 need not be axially oriented. Thus, the invention incorporates both cyclonic and noncyclonic designs.

The embodiment was chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally and equitably entitled. The drawings and preferred embodiments do not and are not intended to limit the ordinary meaning of the claims and their fair and broad interpretation in any way. 

1. A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a housing including a suction inlet; a dirt collection vessel carried on said housing, said dirt collection vessel including a dirt collection chamber; a spiral air guide providing a spiral air path, said spiral air guide having an inlet at a first end and a split outlet at a second end; and a suction generator carried on said housing, said suction generator being in fluid communication with said suction inlet, said dirt collection vessel and said spiral air guide.
 2. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein said dirt collection vessel includes a first dirt collect ion chamber, a primary inlet in communication with said first dirt collection chamber, a second dirt collection chamber, a secondary inlet in communication with said second dirt collection chamber and a chamber outlet.
 3. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, wherein said split outlet includes a first section in communication with a clean air manifold and a second section in communication with said secondary inlet.
 4. The vacuum cleaner of claim 3, wherein said inlet is in communication with said chamber outlet.
 5. The vacuum cleaner of claim 4, wherein said spiral air guide comprises a spiral, tubular conduit and said spiral air path has a substantially constant cross sectional area from said first end to said second end.
 6. The vacuum cleaner of claim 5, wherein said spiral air path has a cross sectional area of between about 250 mm² and about 1000 mm².
 7. The vacuum cleaner of claim 4, wherein said spiral air path has a cross sectional area that decreases from said first end to said second end.
 8. The vacuum cleaner of claim 4, wherein said spiral air path has a cross sectional area that increases from said first end to said second end.
 9. The vacuum cleaner of claim 3, wherein said spiral air path is substantially flat.
 10. The vacuum cleaner of claim 9, further including at least one clean air discharge orifice along an inside portion of said spiral air path said at least one clean air discharge orifice being in fluid communication with said clean air manifold.
 11. The vacuum cleaner of claim 10, wherein said clean air manifold includes a manifold outlet in fluid communication with said suction generator.
 12. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein said first dirt collection chamber is substantially cylindrical in shape, said primary inlet is tangentially directed with respect to said first dirt collection chamber and said chamber outlet is axially directed with respect to said first dirt collection chamber.
 13. The vacuum cleaner of claim 12, wherein said chamber outlet includes a sieve having between about 1000 to about 1500 apertures and each of said apertures has a cross sectional area of between about 2.3 mm² to about 6.4 mm².
 14. The vacuum cleaner of claim 3, wherein said split outlet includes a head wall extending across said air path at an included angle of between about 0 and about 30 degrees.
 15. The vacuum cleaner of claim 3, wherein said split outlet includes a head wall extending across said air path at an included angle of about 15 degrees.
 16. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein said housing includes a first cavity and a second cavity.
 17. The vacuum cleaner of claim 16, wherein said dirt collection vessel is received in said first cavity of said housing.
 18. The vacuum cleaner of claim 17, wherein said spiral air guide is received in said second cavity of said housing and said dirt collection vessel and said spiral air guide are independently removable from said housing. 